US Enterprise is shutting down PDH, NGL units in Mont Belvieu

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Enterprise Products is shutting down its main complex in Mont Belvieu, Texas, in preparation for Hurricane Laura, the US-based midstream company said on Tuesday in a regulatory filing.

The main complex includes the company’s north plant, south plant, propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit and isobutane dehydrogenation (iBDH) units, Enterprise said in a filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

The PDH unit has a capacity of 750,000 tonnes/year.

The iBDH unit has a capacity of 1bn lb/year of isobutylene.

The complex has nine fractionators that have a combined capacity of 662,000 bbl/day, according to the company’s annual report.

Enterprise has 100% stakes in some of the fractionators and 75% stakes in others.

Fractionators receive a mixture of ethane, propane and other natural gas liquids (NGLs) and separate them out.

Ethane is the predominate feedstock among the crackers in the US. Mont Belvieu is the nation’s NGL hub, and Enterprise is one of the main suppliers of NGLs.

Hurricane Laura is expected to make landfall by Thursday near the border between Texas and Louisiana as a major hurricane, with wind speeds of at least 111 miles/hour (179 miles/hour).